Recently it became known that the monks of the UOC-MP must leave the territory of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra until March 29, 2023. However, the Pochaev Lavra can also be taken away from the servants of Moscow.

This was announced on the air of the telethon by the Minister of Culture and Information Policy Alexander Tkachenko. According to him, the ministry is starting the process of returning property in the Holy Dormition Pochaev Lavra, which is now used by the UOC-MP.

Criminal proceedings will be opened against Volodymyr Moroz

Tkachenko said that because of the actions of the governor of the Pochaev Lavra, criminal proceedings will be opened to prevent the use of state property.

The head of the Pochaev Lavra filed a lawsuit to return the church, with which the agreement on the use of the UOC (MP) on the territory of the Lavra ended, the minister said.

According to him, the priest in charge of the Pochaev Lavra did not allow representatives of the reserve to enter the church.

Notice! Judging by Tkachenko’s statement, we are talking about the abbot of the UOC-MP monastery on the territory of this Lavra, Metropolitan of Pochaev Vladimir Moroz.

Such processes will be everywhere where the contracts have been terminated.

“In the Pochaev Lavra, the process of returning property to the state has begun. There will also be some other processes in relation to other institutions where lease agreements or use of famous objects related to the historical heritage of Ukraine have ceased to operate,” Tkachenko said.

In turn, the director of the Kremenets-Pochaev State Historical and Architectural Reserve, Vadim Mikulich, in a comment to the Commander-in-Chief, noted that a decision on the fate of the Pochaev Lavra had not yet been made at the level of the state leadership.

What preceded this

• On March 10, the UOC received a letter from the National Reserve “Kiev-Pechersk Lavra” about the termination of the agreement on the use of state property and buildings on the territory of the reserve.
• The document stated that the UOC must leave the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra before March 29, 2023. After that, a commission for the acceptance and transfer of state property will work in the Lavra.
• The Ministry of Culture added that this applies to all premises rented by the UOC in the Lavra. According to the procedure determined by the legal field, from March 11, the working groups formed by the Reserve will start working on the inventory of property and on the inspection of the technical condition of buildings and structures.
• Subsequently, interesting data from the state audit service appeared. She recorded numerous violations during the revision of the National Reserve “Kiev-Pechersk Lavra”. In particular, it is said about 36 new unauthorized construction sites.
• Minister of Culture Tkachenko said that the transition of the monks of the UOC-MP to the OCU significantly depends on the circumstances. In particular, it is said precisely whether their representatives will be on the territory of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra.